EP2097857A2 - Integrated solution for sensor interface for monitoring the environmental parameters by means of rfid technologies - Google Patents
Integrated solution for sensor interface for monitoring the environmental parameters by means of rfid technologiesInfo
- Publication number
- EP2097857A2 EP2097857A2 EP07849770A EP07849770A EP2097857A2 EP 2097857 A2 EP2097857 A2 EP 2097857A2 EP 07849770 A EP07849770 A EP 07849770A EP 07849770 A EP07849770 A EP 07849770A EP 2097857 A2 EP2097857 A2 EP 2097857A2
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- interface
- unit
- analog
- sensors
- memory unit
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01V—GEOPHYSICS; GRAVITATIONAL MEASUREMENTS; DETECTING MASSES OR OBJECTS; TAGS
- G01V15/00—Tags attached to, or associated with, an object, in order to enable detection of the object
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
- G06K19/00—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings
- G06K19/06—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings characterised by the kind of the digital marking, e.g. shape, nature, code
- G06K19/067—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components
- G06K19/07—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components with integrated circuit chips
- G06K19/0716—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components with integrated circuit chips at least one of the integrated circuit chips comprising a sensor or an interface to a sensor
- G06K19/0717—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components with integrated circuit chips at least one of the integrated circuit chips comprising a sensor or an interface to a sensor the sensor being capable of sensing environmental conditions such as temperature history or pressure
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06K—GRAPHICAL DATA READING; PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS
- G06K19/00—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings
- G06K19/06—Record carriers for use with machines and with at least a part designed to carry digital markings characterised by the kind of the digital marking, e.g. shape, nature, code
- G06K19/067—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components
- G06K19/07—Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components with integrated circuit chips
- G06K19/077—Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier
Definitions
- the invention relates to integrated silicon devices ("System-on-Chip”) and, particularly, it has been developed for applications in which it is necessary to interface electronic controllers to sensors for monitoring environmental parameters through a Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) technology.
- RFID Radio Frequency IDentification
- the aim of the present invention is to provide a device able to variably adapt itself to the different requirements of the selected sensors, and to manage its own power supply in the best way.
- the object of the invention is an integrated device comprising: a microprocessor unit which is interfaced to a program memory unit, a data memory unit, one or more integrated sensors, one or more external sensors which may be provided with digital and/or analog interfaces, an RFID unit, such microprocessor unit being connected to an RTC (Real Time Clock) synchronization module and to power supply means, such device further comprising a power supply management logic.
- a microprocessor unit which is interfaced to a program memory unit, a data memory unit, one or more integrated sensors, one or more external sensors which may be provided with digital and/or analog interfaces, an RFID unit, such microprocessor unit being connected to an RTC (Real Time Clock) synchronization module and to power supply means, such device further comprising a power supply management logic.
- RTC Real Time Clock
- the program memory unit is interfaced to the microprocessor unit through a multiplexer, which controls the alternating access to such program memory unit by either the microprocessor unit or the interface of the said RFID unit.
- the data memory unit is interfaced to the microprocessor unit and the RFID interface through an arbiter unit which regulates the access to such data memory unit.
- the start ("boot") code of the microprocessor unit is contained in a ROM (Read Only Memory) memory unit.
- the device has at least one integrated sensor, particularly a temperature sensor, which is provided with an appropriate interface to such microprocessor unit, and two different interfaces for the external sensors, i.e. an analog interface and a digital interface respectively.
- a temperature sensor which is provided with an appropriate interface to such microprocessor unit, and two different interfaces for the external sensors, i.e. an analog interface and a digital interface respectively.
- the analog interface is of differential type, and the inputs thereof are provided with equalizer/adapter circuits such as, for example, operational amplifiers for connection of external analog sensors.
- the digital interface is of serial type, and a two-line serial interface is particularly preferred for data and synchronism, respectively.
- Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus comprising a device according to the present invention
- Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram of the device according to the present invention.
- Figure 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the operation of the analog-digital conversion chain which is incorporated in the device.
- Figure 1 illustrates an apparatus for detecting and transmitting environmental data and the like, comprising the device of the present invention
- reference numeral 10 denotes the above mentioned integrated device, which is provided with at least one integrated sensor 11 and it is connected to a plurality of external sensors 12, a battery 13 and an antenna 14 whose coils surround the device.
- the sensors are connected to the device through a power supply line 15, data transfer line 16, and synchronization line 17.
- FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the device according to the present invention
- reference numeral 1 denotes a microprocessor unit 1 , which is connected to the other components of the device through a system bus 101.
- the microprocessor unit 1 communicates to a program memory unit 2 through an interface module 201 ; such program memory 2 is connected to an interface 201 through a multiplexer 102, to which an interface 107 of an RFID unit 7 is also connected.
- a data memory unit 3 is also shareable between an interface 301 connected to the microprocessor unit 1 and the interface 107 of the RFID unit 7, but in this case sharing occurs through an arbiter module 103.
- the system bus 101 is also connected to a static RAM 4, which is used to process the data acquired by the sensors, the system bus 101 being also connected to interfaces 401 of integrated sensors 11 and interfaces 501 , 601 of external sensors, not shown herein.
- the system bus 101 is connected to a synchronization module of an RTC system 5, which is coupled to a module 105 to keep synchronism only with the microprocessor 1.
- module 105 can also control switches 132, 133, 134, and 135 from a power supply line 130 through a line 205.
- the power supply line 130 is connected to the primary power source of the device and to batteries, except for a main switch 131 which is controlled only by the RFID unit 7 and a test logic module 9.
- the main power supply of the whole device (controlled by the main switch 131) is set by the user of the device itself through a suitable radio control.
- the local power supply of the various peripheral devices is set within the firmware contained in a non-volatile memory of the device, and therefore it has to be considered dependent on the final application.
- the microprocessor 1 is connected to a ROM unit 8 and a test/calibration module 6.
- the operation of the device according to the present invention will become apparent from the following.
- the system can take the code and manage the data using the non-volatile memory resources 2 and 3.
- the program memory 2 is a resource multiplexed between the microprocessor and a radio interface; this means that only one of the two modules can exclusively access to the program memory 2 in a given time.
- the data memory 3 is arbitrated by the module 103; this means that both system bus 101 and radio interface 107 can simultaneously access to the data memory 3. If the data memory is occupied in a given time, the arbiter module 103 can put one of the two competitors in a wait state.
- a Read Only Memory (ROM) 8 stores the "boot” code of the microprocessor 1 to allow the whole system to behave as a completely autonomous RFID system.
- a time manager or "Real Time Clock” (RTC) module manages the synchronization within the device by generating "awake” events at programmable intervals which can act as a reference for the measurements carried out by the sensor.
- the RTC module can selectively and programmably turn off/on most circuits of the integrated device so as to allow the final user to set a power consumption logic.
- the system is provided with an integrated main power switch 131 which can turn off/on the whole device, such main power switch 131 being controlled by an appropriate control generated by the radio interface 107.
- the system is provided with a circuit (not shown) to control the power supply voltage stability, which allows the connection to a power supply source such as standard-type batteries.
- the device can provide the external sensors with power supply by incorporating a programmable power manager.
- the power supply can be provided to the sensors in continuous or alternating mode, depending on the logic selected for the power consumption of the whole device.
- a static RAM memory 4 is interfaced with the main bus to temporarily store the data processed by the microprocessor system.
- the whole system is provided with specific circuits, i.e. the test/calibration module 6 and the test logic module 9, to automatically test the interfaced modules on the main bus and the analog modules comprising the radio interface 107.
- the device incorporates at least one sensor 11 (e.g., a temperature sensor) and two different interfaces to control external sensors.
- the analog interface 601 is of differential type and can be used for those sensors which need to adapt only the voltage or current level. Typically, these sensors will be provided with a signal equalizer/adapter circuit (e.g., based on an operational amplifier) which is directly connected to the differential inputs of such interface.
- the analog interface 601 is internally connected to an analog- digital conversion circuit which allows the voltage/current level measured by the external sensor to be converted into a 7-bit word which can be managed and processed by the microprocessor system, if desired.
- the digital interface 501 is of serial type, typically a two-line interface, for data transmission and synchronization, and it allows the external connection of more complex sensors provided with their own control logic and programming ability (e.g., state and control registers).
- the digital interface 501 completely bypasses the analog-digital conversion circuit acting downstream the analog interface, and it is able to provide data from the external sensors directly to the microprocessor system.
- the digital interface can connect more sensors in a parallel fashion, such sensors differing from one another by a 7-bit logical address (the maximum theoretical number of connectable sensors is 128).
- Figure 3 illustrates the operation of an analog-digital conversion chain which is incorporated in a preferred embodiment of the device.
- the power supply from the battery 13 is normalized by a voltage regulator 136 which powers both a module 138 supplying the reference voltage for all measurement circuits, and the integrated sensor 11 , i.e. the temperature sensor.
- the reference voltage 139 is obtained by further normalizing the voltage from the regulator 136 against possible changes due to temperature.
- the signal 110 from the sensor 11 is multiplexed with the signal 140 from the monitor 137 of the power supply battery 13 in the multiplexer 20, which is driven by the control logic.
- the two signals 139 and 150 are now compared in a module 21 to obtain a differential signal 151 which is amplified in a module 22 by introducing a programmable input gain factor 24 which allows the amplification by multiplying the signal by a factor 2, 4, 8, or 16.
- the amplified differential signal 152 is then sent to a multiplexer 23 which starts the effective conversion thereof along with differential signal 611 from the analog interface 601.
- the differential signal 160 is then sent to an analog-digital converter 40.
- the voltage references, VH 30 and VL 31 , of the analog-digital converter 40 can be controlled by a gain factor 32 (A2D Gain), while the common mode of the differential input thereof can be controlled by an offset parameter 33 (A2D Common Mode), the voltage references, VH 30 and VL 31 , being used for the conversion.
- A2D Gain gain factor 32
- A2D Common Mode the voltage references, VH 30 and VL 31 , being used for the conversion.
- this functionality can be generally modeled by an equation as:
- A2Dout (Voifferential input— A2Dcommon Mode) / A2Dcain-
- the parameter A2D Gain acts as an offset element which theoretically cancels the output of the analog-digital converter for a well known input voltage.
- a simple digital adder 42 has been added to the output of the analog-digital converter to further control the offset of the whole chain through the value A2D Offset 41.
- the output 43 of the converter is represented by a 7-bit word which can be further processed by the programs within the system.
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Computer Hardware Design (AREA)
- Microelectronics & Electronic Packaging (AREA)
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Geophysics (AREA)
- Power Sources (AREA)
- Semiconductor Integrated Circuits (AREA)
- Microcomputers (AREA)
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
IT000117A ITGE20060117A1 (it) | 2006-11-29 | 2006-11-29 | Soluzione integrata per l'interfaccia di sensori per il monitoraggio diparametri ambientali attraverso tecnologie rfid (radio frequency identification) |
PCT/IT2007/000833 WO2008065692A2 (en) | 2006-11-29 | 2007-11-29 | Integrated solution for sensor interface for monitoring the environmental parameters by means of rfid technologies |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP2097857A2 true EP2097857A2 (en) | 2009-09-09 |
Family
ID=39468374
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP07849770A Withdrawn EP2097857A2 (en) | 2006-11-29 | 2007-11-29 | Integrated solution for sensor interface for monitoring the environmental parameters by means of rfid technologies |
Country Status (4)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US8035512B2 (it) |
EP (1) | EP2097857A2 (it) |
IT (1) | ITGE20060117A1 (it) |
WO (1) | WO2008065692A2 (it) |
Families Citing this family (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
WO2010094294A1 (de) * | 2009-02-17 | 2010-08-26 | Siemens Aktiengesellschaft | Transportverpackung für ein feldgerät zur prozessinstrumentierung |
SI23192A (sl) * | 2009-10-20 | 2011-04-29 | Ids D.O.O. | Postopek za zajemanje in oblikovanje signalov zunanjih senzorjev z RFID pametno nalepko in vezje za izvajanje tega postopka |
US20120274524A1 (en) | 2009-12-16 | 2012-11-01 | Adant Srl | Metamaterial reconfigurable antennas |
EP2630614B1 (en) | 2010-10-22 | 2018-12-12 | Smartrac Investment B.V. | Advanced functionality of remote-access devices |
SI23851A (sl) | 2011-08-03 | 2013-02-28 | Ids D.O.O. | Postopek za zajemanje podatkov iz zunanjih digitalnih senzorjev z RFID pametno nalepko in nalepkino integrirano vezje za izvajanje tega postopka |
US20150317896A1 (en) * | 2014-05-01 | 2015-11-05 | Solvera, LLC | Smart label with integrated sensor |
US10079650B2 (en) * | 2015-12-04 | 2018-09-18 | Infineon Technologies Ag | Robust high speed sensor interface for remote sensors |
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US4853901A (en) * | 1986-02-18 | 1989-08-01 | Diagnostic Services, Inc. | Automatic liquid level recording device |
US5488376A (en) * | 1994-04-26 | 1996-01-30 | Texas Instruments Incorporated | Transponder interface circuit |
US5971282A (en) * | 1995-09-26 | 1999-10-26 | Intel Corporation | Personal token card with sensor |
US6046676A (en) * | 1997-11-14 | 2000-04-04 | International Business Machines Corporation | Self powered electronic memory identification tag with dual communication ports |
US6778096B1 (en) * | 1997-11-17 | 2004-08-17 | International Business Machines Corporation | Method and apparatus for deploying and tracking computers |
DE19844631A1 (de) * | 1998-09-29 | 2000-04-06 | Gantner Electronic Gmbh Schrun | System zur Überwachung, Steuerung, Verfolgung und Handling von Objekten |
US6876295B1 (en) * | 1998-12-16 | 2005-04-05 | Symbol Technologies, Inc. | Wireless communication devices configurable via passive tags |
US6720866B1 (en) * | 1999-03-30 | 2004-04-13 | Microchip Technology Incorporated | Radio frequency identification tag device with sensor input |
US6892052B2 (en) * | 2002-03-26 | 2005-05-10 | Nokia Corporation | Radio frequency identification (RF-ID) based discovery for short range radio communication |
US7072697B2 (en) * | 2002-10-22 | 2006-07-04 | Nokia Corporation | Method and device for transponder aided wake-up of a low power radio device by a wake-up event |
US7873723B2 (en) * | 2003-01-30 | 2011-01-18 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Device data |
ES2656114T3 (es) * | 2004-01-27 | 2018-02-23 | Altivera L.L.C. | Sensores de identificación de radiofrecuencia de diagnóstico y aplicaciones de los mismos |
US7495558B2 (en) * | 2004-04-27 | 2009-02-24 | Infratab, Inc. | Shelf-life monitoring sensor-transponder system |
AU2005258784A1 (en) * | 2004-07-01 | 2006-01-12 | Powerid Ltd. | Battery-assisted backscatter RFID transponder |
US20060103533A1 (en) * | 2004-11-15 | 2006-05-18 | Kourosh Pahlavan | Radio frequency tag and reader with asymmetric communication bandwidth |
US7397370B2 (en) * | 2005-03-01 | 2008-07-08 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Monitoring an environment using a RFID assembly |
US7408463B2 (en) * | 2005-09-30 | 2008-08-05 | Intel Corporation | Radio frequency identification tag |
US7450008B2 (en) * | 2005-11-10 | 2008-11-11 | International Business Machines Corporation | Sending service data to an RFID tag while an attached computer system is powered off |
WO2007064747A1 (en) * | 2005-11-29 | 2007-06-07 | Pango Networks | Methods and apparatus for active radio frequency identification tags |
US7331708B2 (en) * | 2006-02-23 | 2008-02-19 | National Semiconductor Corporation | Frequency ratio digitizing temperature sensor with linearity correction |
US7446658B2 (en) * | 2006-03-09 | 2008-11-04 | Avago Technologies General Ip (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. | Identification (ID) system and method of operation thereof |
-
2006
- 2006-11-29 IT IT000117A patent/ITGE20060117A1/it unknown
-
2007
- 2007-11-29 EP EP07849770A patent/EP2097857A2/en not_active Withdrawn
- 2007-11-29 WO PCT/IT2007/000833 patent/WO2008065692A2/en active Application Filing
- 2007-11-29 US US12/516,804 patent/US8035512B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Non-Patent Citations (1)
Title |
---|
See references of WO2008065692A2 * |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
US20100060449A1 (en) | 2010-03-11 |
ITGE20060117A1 (it) | 2008-05-30 |
WO2008065692A3 (en) | 2009-01-08 |
WO2008065692A2 (en) | 2008-06-05 |
US8035512B2 (en) | 2011-10-11 |
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DAX | Request for extension of the european patent (deleted) | ||
RAP1 | Party data changed (applicant data changed or rights of an application transferred) |
Owner name: MONTALBANO TECHNOLOGY S.P.A. |
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Effective date: 20110121 |
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STAA | Information on the status of an ep patent application or granted ep patent |
Free format text: STATUS: THE APPLICATION IS DEEMED TO BE WITHDRAWN |
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Effective date: 20140602 |